Kellen Winslow Reportedly Fails Physical with Patriots

Kellen Winslow's quest to get back to the NFL after the Seattle Seahawks surprisingly released him has hit a major snag.

UPDATE: Thursday, September 6 at 9:15 a.m. ET by Adam Wells

Reports Wednesday that Winslow failed a physical with the Patriots appear to be untrue. According to ESPN.com, the Patriots were "aware of the questions about his knees, but they did not fail him on his physical."

The report also says that, due to the depth at tight end the Patriots already have, Winslow "may have fallen into the 'in case of emergency' category."

Adding another tight end to their already loaded roster of tight ends would seem to be overkill at this point. Winslow will scramble to find work, though he could just end up waiting until the season starts, and when injuries happen, he can make some calls.

...Kellen Winslow, who New England brought in Tuesday for a workout, failed his physical because of his notoriously bad right knee.

Winslow underwent reconstructive surgery on the knee after a motorcycle accident in 2005. He's had several procedures in the years since and has missed plenty of field time because of it.

Looking at Winslow's production the last three years with Tampa Bay, you would never know that anything was really wrong with him.

He hasn't developed into the superstar everyone thought he would be when Cleveland drafted him with the sixth pick in the 2004 draft, but there aren't many 29-year-old tight ends who have amassed 218 catches, 2,377 yards and 12 touchdowns since the start of the 2009 season.

This has been a whirlwind offseason for Winslow, who was traded to Seattle in May. The Seahawks released him last Saturday when they decided to go in a different direction.

Given the problems that Winslow is apparently having with his right knee, you have to wonder what it will take for someone to take a chance on him this season and in the future.